Project Seen As Development Catalyst

DELRAY BEACH — From his front yard, Adrian Arsthene has watched the weeds grow, the grass fray and the trash mount across the street from his home, bringing the urban wasteland closer and closer.

The vacant property along Northwest First Street, hidden by thick trees from the nearby West Atlantic Avenue thoroughfare, has turned into dumping grounds and a hideaway for vagrants, Arsthene and other neighbors said.

"This is disturbing," said Arsthene, who has lived on First Street four years. "I want to see this cleaned up. I'm tired of the bushes."

He may soon get his wish. In about a year, the long-neglected property near the city's tennis center is to be converted into stores, offices, townhouses, condominiums and parking lots.

The city's Community Redevelopment Agency, which owns the 4.6 acres for the project between West Atlantic and Northeast First Street, began Monday to put plans in motion by accepting five building proposals from private developers.

The project, in the making for more than two years, is intended to bring middle-income families to the area -- vacant lots once home to dilapidated apartment units and a retail complex -- and spur the ongoing redevelopment of West Atlantic Avenue.

"We hope this project will serve as a catalyst for the rest of the avenue," said Chris Brown, the CRA's executive director.

The projects from the Phoenix Group and Renaissance Partners may be disqualified because the developers delivered them minutes after the 5 p.m. submission deadline on Monday.

The plans will be sent today to the CRA's consultant in Boston, Barry Abramson, who will review them by June 22 and recommend the most feasible ones. The CRA board will then hear presentations from the developers and make a choice in the fall.

If all goes as planned, the developers should break ground next spring.

The CRA, which spent $2 million to accumulate the land, plans to sell it to the selected developers for $1.3 million, Brown said. The developers will use their own finances to construct the buildings and market them.

Leon Fooksman can be reached at lfooksman@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6647.